2013-14 EPL Season Predictions

The 2013-14 Premier League season is about to start with the first matches being played on Saturday, August 17, not counting the Community Shield match the week before. The summer transfer season has been somewhat anti-climactic for most EPL teams. Most of the bigger name players have taken the exorbitant fees being paid out by some of the continental teams including PSG, Monaco, and Bayern Munich.

This new season brings with it plenty of changes, particularly in the changing of managers. It will be an interesting season in terms of how this will affect the respective teams as well as the league in general. Perhaps the two most interesting manager changes are Manchester United and Everton. Both David Moyes and Roberto Martinez are taking major steps in their careers to see how they handle managing bigger clubs than where they came from.

For the 2013-14 season making predictions this early is always a bit difficult to do. With the transfer window not ending until the end of August there are always players coming and going up until the final minutes of the transfer window.

With that said here are my 2013-14 Premier League Season Predictions:

Premier League Champions: Chelsea – Jose Mourinho’s return coupled with the players they have will be a imposing force for the season. Manchester City will certainly make a better run for the top this year, but Chelsea have a formidable team that should come through with the EPL title in 2013-14.

Manchester United may have won the league last season, but the change in managers and the strengthening of teams around them, mean it will be much more difficult this year. Arsenal should push for a comfortable top four finish and even push for the title as well.

Top Four:

1. Chelsea

2. Manchester United

3. Manchester City

4. Tottenham

European Places: 5. Arsenal

6. Liverpool

Liverpool and Tottenham will make it difficult for teams above them, and I think that this is the season that Tottenham is able to get into the Champions League. I also think that Arsenal will struggle and fail to make it into Champions League. Liverpool could push for a top four or even fifth place finish, but I think they will end up sixth. They could finish even lower than that if they lose Suarez at any point in the season.

West Brom, Swansea, and Everton will also make it an interesting middle of the table and any of those teams could take fifth or sixth as well.

FA Cup: Arsenal – Arsene Wenger and Arsenal need a trophy and the FA Cup is their best chance for this. I’m predicting that Manchester City will go further in the Champions League and see them put more focus on that and the Premier League leaving the FA Cup for teams like Manchester United and Arsenal to fight for. There is always the possibility of teams like Liverpool or Everton to make a good run, or any other team, but more and more the top teams are willing to go farther in the FA Cup.

Capital One Cup: Everton – Roberto Martinez got a taste of what it’s like to make a cup run with Wigan Athletic last season and I think he will push his team for another cup run in both the Capital One Cup and FA Cup.

Relegation:

18. Fulham

19. Crystal Palace

20. Hull City

Relegation predictions are always a difficult thing. Fulham has done little to truly bolster their team, but looking around them teams like Norwich City, Newcastle United, Southampton, Stoke City and even Sunderland could easily get pulled in and sent down. I do believe that of those Norwich and Southampton are the most safe while Stoke could be the more likely to get dropped.